100 Times
by x-NewGirlInTown-x
Summary: Inspired by 'The 100 Times Challenge'. 100 things that James Potter did. Drabbles, please RxR.
1. Laughed

**Disclaimer:** As always, it belongs to J.K Rowling, not me. Life sucks, doesn't it?

**A/N: **Ok, so this is my first attempt at something like this, not exactly sure how it's going to turn out. Thanks go to **_sick-atxxheart _**for creating this challenge and giving me some inspiration. I'm not gonna bug you guys with an author's note at the end of every chapter asking for reviews, so I'll just say it now: please let me know what you think! Hope you enjoy, and let's get on with the show.

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The first time he laughed was when he was just 3 weeks old.

Only his mum had been there, and nobody believed her when she told them afterwards, but it didn't matter. She knew what she had heard.

She had been standing in front of his crib, trying to kill the spider scuttling across the wall of their living room. Desperate not to scream hysterically, she shot a stunning spell at the hideous creature, only to have it rebound off a picture frame and hit her square in the face.

But, despite the fact that she was slightly...stupified, she had heard him.

Her three-week-old son had laughed.

Looking back, she should have realised then that "prankster" was simply something in his genes.


	2. Cried

The only time he ever cried was the day of his parents' funeral.

He had stood by their graveside, Sirius' warm hand gripping his shoulder sympathetically, and he couldn't fight off the sobs that broke out of him.

Tears of sadness: for the loss of hs parents, and how deeply he would miss them.

Tears of anger: for the Dark Wizard that had killed him, for the army of followers he had gathered to help him.

Tears of frustration: for the pitying looks his friends gave him, for the way even _she_ treated him differently, more kindly.

He didn't want things to be different, and tears made them different. So he vowed never again. That was the only time he cried.

Or, at least, it was the only time anyone knew about.


	3. Dreamed

Every time he dreamed at Hogwarts, she was there.

Her red hair flying, her emerald eyes sparkling, her laughter ringing out in peals...no matter what, she was there.

In his dreams, there were smiles, and friendship, and sometimes there was love.

He knew it was ridiculous, of course. In reality, she couldn't stand him, greeted him only with coldness and ire. In real life, she'd never like him.

He guessed that was why he dreamed.


	4. Kissed

The first time they kissed, all his dreams came true.

He had waited so long for it to happen - nearly 5 years, to be exact, although it felt like far longer.

There had been persistence, refusals, sincerity, wariness, and finally, _amazingly_, a firm friendship.

All in all, it had definitely been an uphill battle.

But the second their lips met, he knew without a doubt.

She had definitely been worth the wait.


	5. Hugged

The first time he hugged his son, he felt whole.

He had exactly the same shock of untidy black hair as his father, and exactly the same emerald green eyes as his mother, and was exactly the right mix of them both to be truly perfect.

And as James cradled baby Harry in his arms, he felt whole.

In an instant, his whole life changed. He knew now that he would do anything for this child that was half of him and half of Lily -- he would steal for him, he would kill for him, he would die for him. He would do anthing, _anything_, to keep this baby safe. Because he was his. His and Lily's, the final piece of their incomplete puzzle.

So James smiled proudly as he hugged the tiny boy even closer to his body.

He had a son now. He was whole.


	6. Killed

He never killed. Ever.

There had been times that he wanted to, times he'd come close. In a Death Eater battle with the Order, perhaps, or that time that Snivelly had cursed his hair pink in second year.

Yes, he'd definitely _thought_ about killing, he couldn't deny that.

But no matter what the situation, he'd never actually been able to do it. At that crucial moment, he could never force himself to utter those two fateful words. It just wasn't in his nature.

He wasn't a killer. So he just never killed.


	7. Screamed

He never screamed either.

Lily did, frequently, her face turning as red as her hair as she vented...usually about him. But he never screamed back at her, not even once. It just wasn't his style.

After all, as a Marauder, the phrase 'Don't get mad, get even' was something he lived by. As far as he was concerned, 'screaming' was getting mad; 'pranking' was getting even.

Besides, it just wasn't very _cool_, was it?

After all, screaming was for women. And James Potter?

James Potter was all man.


	8. Bled

Alright, fine. The first time he'd bled, he'd screamed like a girl.

He _was_ only 6, and blood was alien to him. Anyone would be petrified. (He'd often vehemently argued that point with his mother in later years.)

It was only a small small slice in his leg, but at the time it had been fatal, a war wound sure to lead to imminent death.

But after his mum had healed it, and kissed him, and sent him out to play, he began to like the power that a war wound could bring.

The other children were in awe of him, begging him to recount the tale, marvelling at the faint puckered line.

Needless to say, he bled pretty frequently after that.


	9. Giggled

The only time he ever giggled was in 7th year, and unfortunately, was also in front of his girlfriend.

Of course, it _wasn't _a giggle. James Potter didn't _giggle_, for Merlin's sake. Giggling was a girly thing to do. The noise he made was a chuckle.

An incredibly deep, manly chuckle. _Duh_.

But Lily was adamant, and she wouldn't be swayed -- as far as she was concerned, James Potter had giggled.

And let me tell you, she giggled about that for a _very_ long time.


	10. Slapped

He slapped people all the time, especially at Hogwarts.

He slapped Sirius' back after a particularly successful prank. He slapped a teammate's shoulder after an especially skilful goal on the Quidditch pitch. It was always a friendly gesture, offered as congratulations or in admiration.

Of course, he'd been slapped too. Not just by Sirius and his teammates, but also by _her_. Not such a friendly gesture.

Her slaps stung. Badly. In fact, they would have been more than enough to put any normal person off. But not James.

Because in his eyes, slaps were a sign of affection. Which is perhaps why he thought all along that Lily loved him far more than she originally did.


	11. Attacked

He remember exactly what it felt like to be attacked.

Helpless. Utterly helpless. All you could do was close your eyes and throw yourself into the onslaught. And hope.

You could hope against hope that you survived.

The first time he had been attacked, it was by the early spring-time pollen, in the garden just outside his childhood home. The last time, it was by the Darkest Wizard known to man, in their sanctuary, the one place he thought they would be safe forever.

The gap between the two was massive, and yet in both cases he'd felt exactly the same.

Helpless.


	12. Battled

Of course, he remember what it felt like to _be_ the attacker, too.

He battled a lot in his life. With his friends. With the Order.

Battling felt different. It wasn't helplessness; it was hunger.

Pure adrenaline, rushing through him, heightening his senses, driving him on.

Battling didn't scare him, not like being attacked did. The battle itself was a rush, a high.

It was just the unknown outcome that pushed fear into his heart.


	13. Belonged

When he looked back on it, he'd belonged from the very beginning.

He belonged to the Wizarding world. He belonged to his family.

From his very first breath, he'd belonged.

And yet in James' eyes...those things didn't count. They were a given, just luck. There was never a choice about whether he belonged somewhere different.

But when the sorting hat placed him in Gryffindor, it wasn't luck, wasn't random.

It had seen inside his head: knew his strengths and his weaknesses, his hopes and his fears. And then it had decided.

Gryffindor.

And so for what felt like the first time in his life, James belonged.


	14. Blushed

It was just one of those things, he guessed.

In genuine honesty, he couldn't remember a single time in his life when he'd blushed.

It just didn't fit him. He was confident, arrogant, not easily embarrassed.

He'd made _other_ people blush, of course. Plenty of times. But no-one had ever been able to do the same to him.

Not even Sirius, and that time he'd...

Well, best not to mention it. It was embarrassing. Very. Painful to speak of, in fact.

But at least he hadn't blushed.


	15. Broke

He broke her things all the time. Accidently, of course. But he still broke them.

Reading glasses, beaded jewellery, perfume bottles...

He wasn't clumsy, you know. More often than not, these things were knocked over in some sweeping declaration of love. The kind that involved climbing onto her dresser, and wildly gesticulating hand gestures.

Each smash was met with a flinch from him, fearing some sort of violent physical outburst, a slap at the very least.

But Lily never seemed to mind, really. After all, as she said, he kept the important things in one piece.

He never broke his wedding vows. And he never broke her heart.

If he had, no doubt she _would_ have broken his nose.


	16. Confused

He was confused by things a whole lot more than he cared to admit, to be honest.

Like girls, for example. And Muggle stuff, like com-puters (put _what_? _where_?) and football (the ball didn't even _fly_, for Merlin's sake!). And occasionally Sirius.

Yup, lots of things confused the hell out of him. Not that he'd ever admit it.

Because it's not like he was stupid, or anything. Quite the contrary. In fact, the things that most other people found difficult, James could probably do in his sleep.

Ask him to explain every rule to Quidditch ever made, for instance, and he could answer without skipping a beat. Give him a NEWT-level tranfiguration paper, and he'd be able to fill it in blind-folded, no problem at all.

So, while he was confused a lot (secretly, of course!), he probably confused other people a whole lot more.

Because the most confusing thing about James was that the things that confused him...generally weren't that confusing at all.


	17. Communicated

Nobody could communicate quite like James Potter.

He communicated with his friends, his enemies, his professors, his parents...no matter what the situation, he was never afraid to communicate exactly how he was feeling.

Yup, no doubt about it - James Potter was an open book.

And whether he was screaming at his teammates on the Quidditch pitch, sneering at the Slytherins in corridors, or serenading his only sweetheart from his seat in the Great Hall, there was always one thing that people around him had to admit.

As books go, James Potter was one hell of an interesting read.

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**A/N:** I wasn't really sure about this one if I'm honest, so any feedback would be greatly appreciated :)


	18. Cracked

He liked to think of himself as someone untouchable. Invincible. Someone unable to be broken.

But the pressure breaks all of us eventually. And, despite his outward portrayal of power and strength, James Potter was no different.

So one day, he cracked.

There were just too many uncertainties in his life, too many unknowns. I mean, what if it was all for nothing? The running, the hiding...what if Voldemort found them anyway? What if Lily or Harry got hurt? What if they...?

What if. What if. What if?

There were too many questions, and not enough answers. He cracked.

Lily found him, hours later, slumped on his knees in the living room, surrounded by glass and overturned furniture. She didn't say anything, but just moved to him , wrapping her delicate arms around his broad shoulders. Protecting him. Making him strong.

Lily was his certainty. And, until they could come out of hiding and he became invincible James once more, he would cling on to that certainty for all he was worth.


	19. Damaged

Damage was a very common word in his vocabulary.

After all, he experienced it on a daily basis.

During his time at Hogwarts, he and Sirius and the Marauders had probably damaged more school property than the rest of the students that passed through it's hallways combined.

Desks, chairs, toilets, mirrors (they were Marauders, remember! A much stronger force than any superstition) - it varied day to day.

But more importantly, he was damaged himself. Everyone was.

War changed people. As they grew up and out of their time at Hogwarts (and the pranks that went with it) they saw tears shed, and blood spilled, and lives lost. And they were the kind of wounds that just didn't heal over.

So even though he was young, and strong, and physically fit, James Potter was undeniably damaged.

Right up until the day he died.


	20. Danced

On the rare occasions that he danced...it wasn't a very pretty sight.

In person, James Potter was cool, charming, and very, very smooth.

On the dancefloor, though...that just didn't translate.

He claimed that his lightning reflexes and co-ordination were better suited to a more aggressive sport, like Quidditch. But in reality? Dancing just made him uncomfortable.

In fact, the only time he ever remembered doing it without complaint was (of course) with Lily. On their wedding day. She loved to dance, so they just had.

That was a perfect example of what love did to a person, in James' mind. Because despite the fact that he hated it, he wasn't good at it, and it made him feel almost clumsy...

For Lily, he would have danced all night.


	21. Deceived

If he was honest, he deceived himself a whole lot more than he deceived other people.

When he finally married Lily, he deceived himself into thinking that they would spend forever together. He tricked himself into believing that he would live a long and happy life with the girl he loved, and that they'd share a bright, exciting future. He was wrong.

When they had Harry, he deceived himself into thinking that he'd watch his son grow up. He tricked himself into believing that he be there forever for his little boy, to watch over him, and guide him, and keep him safe from harm. He was wrong.

When they went into hiding, he deceived himself into thinking that maybe they _could_ outsmart Voldemort. He tricked himself itno thinking that everyone shared his storng morals and fierce loyalty, and that everything would work out fine.

Unfortunately - as Peter proved to him by making the worst betrayal a friend could make - he was wrong.


	22. Decorated

He remembered the day Lily had told him she was pregnant like it was yesterday.

There should have been panic - they both knew that it wasn't the best time to have a child, with all the fighting and the danger and the threat of unknown tomorrows...

Yes, they probably should have sat down together, and talked about what this meant for them, their child, their future as a family. But they didn't.

Instead, they went shopping, and then came straight home and decorated their spare room, transforming it into a nursery.

Because that's what the baby meant to James. Not more fear, more worry, like it should have...Instead, it meant that the spare room was spare no longer. The gap in their lives was no longer gaping. They would be whole, complete. A family.

And to them, that meant the world.


End file.
